From the inaugural tournament in 2009, eight editions of the Women’s T20 World Cup have been played to date.
While West Indies has had a team in every tournament to date, the two notable years to date were 2016, lifting the trophy after defeating Australia in the finals at Eden Gardens, India, and the successful hosting of the tournament in 2018.
West Indies 2016 Champions
West Indies broke Australia’s title-winning streak in 2016. The defending champions posted a competitive 148/5. In response West Indies women raced to a quick 120 before losing a wicket, comprised of 66 runs (45 balls) by Hayley Matthews and Captain Stefanie Taylor’s 54, going on to win by 8 wickets.
West Indies as 2018 Host
West Indies hosted the 6th edition of the ICC Women’s T20 from November 9 – 24 2018 using three venues the Darren Sammy Cricket Ground – St. Lucia, Sir Vivian Richards Stadium – Antigua and Guyana National Stadium – Guyana. Leading up to the tournament in February 2017, the ICC confirmed that this would be the first T20 tournament that uses the decision review system, with one review per side. Sir Richie Richard was among the two match referees named for the tournament.
Defending Champions West Indies fell to Australia in their semifinal encounter. Australia went on to win their 4th title defeating England by 8 wickets in the finals.
2024 Tournament
This edition of the tournament is being held in the UAE on behalf of ‘official tournament hosts’ Bangladesh who are unable to perform due to security concerns due to ongoing political unrest. Two venues, the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and Sharjah Cricket Stadium, will be utilised.
West Indies qualified for the 2024 editions because of the third-place finish in the group stage last tournament and joins Bangladesh, England winners of the inaugural edition, Scotland, and South Africa in Group B in the 10-team tournament. Group A comprises defending champions Australia who have won 6 times, India, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. Two groups will play in a round-robin format from October 3 to 13, with the semifinals on October 16 and 17. The finals will be on October 20, 2024.
In a move towards equalising the playfield across the male and female competitions, the ICC has increased the tournament purse by 225% from the previous edition. The total prize purse is US$7.96m, broken down as follows
- Winners: $2.34m
- Runners-up: $1.17m
- Losing semifinalists: $675,000
- Third and fourth place finish in the group stage: $270,000
- Fifth place finish in the group stage: $135,000
- Each group-stage win: $31,154
